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The Lost World (Crichton novel)
The Lost World is the best selling sequel to Jurassic Park, written by Michael Crichton in 1995. Michael Crichton had not planned to write a sequel to Jurassic Park, but after the success of the movie Jurassic Park, many fans and Steven Spielberg asked for a sequel, to which Crichton obliged. Plot: Six years after surviving the disaster on Jurassic Park, eccentric mathematician Ian Malcolm and rich dinosaur-enthusiast Richard Levine are researching InGen's mysterious Site B, looking for its exact location, after learning of its existence. Site B, an island named Isla Sorna, was the secret "production factory" for Jurassic Park, where dinosaur stock were hatched and grown, before shipment to Isla Nublar. Levine mysteriously disappears, and Malcolm fears he might have discovered the location of "Site B", and in his impatience already set out for it without letting Malcolm know. Custom field vehicle creator Doc Thorne and his assistant Eddie Carr, who provided much of Levine's equipment, deduce the location of Site B, with the assistance of Malcolm and two schoolchildren who assisted Levine, computer whiz R.B "Arby" Bentonand his friend Kelly Curtis . They organize a rescue operation and take with them two highly customized RVs, modified for scientific purposes, as well as a solar powered Ford Explorer, a motorcycle, and an observation platform called a 'high hide'. Stowed away with them as they leave are Arby and Kelly, who plan to rescue Levine as well. At the same time, Lewis Dodgson, geneticist at Biosyn - InGen's archrival - and two colleagues head to Isla Sorna, hoping to steal dinosaur eggs for their own company. Sarah Harding, a wildlife observer who had a previous relationship with Malcolm, accompanies them on the trip to the island. Dodgson's team throws Sarah overboard from their ship, thinking she will drown, and continues with their plan. Dodgson locates a nest of theTyrannosaurus rex and, accompanied by two others from his company, George Baselton and Howard King, walks up to the eggs, carrying a box that makes ultrasonic frequencies which fend off the grown Tyrannosaurs. Dodgson tells Basleton and King to grab the eggs while he holds the adult dinosaurs at bay with the box, but Basleton freezes in fright once he sees the parents. Dodgson is forced to try to retrieve the eggs himself. While walking closer to the eggs, he steps on a hatchling Tyrannosaur, breaking its leg. The power cord for the box is pulled out, leaving the men defenseless. It takes the adult Tyrannosaurs a while to notice that the ultrasonic noise had stopped, but they soon move cautiously forward and grab Basleton, violently killing him. Dodgson makes a run for the SUV King is in, but one Tyrannosaur pushes the SUV partially off the hill before it can drive away. Dodgson falls out of the vehicle but survives. King is later brutally killed by Velociraptors. Coming across the baby Tyrannosaur, Eddie brings it back to the base camp, where Malcolm and Harding fix its broken leg. The absence of the infant is noted by its parents, who track their offspring down by smell, leading them directly to the base camp. The T-Rex then pushes one of the trailers off of the cliff, with Malcolm and Sarah inside. Both survive the fall. Meanwhile the group at the "high hide" are attacked by Velociraptors, who kill Eddie and kidnap Arby. Thorne and Levine rescue Arby, and the survivors take shelter in an abandoned gas station set up by InGen for the island's workers when the island was still in use. There they encounter twoCarnotaurus, but they scare them away with flashlights. Once daylight comes, Harding attempts to get the Explorer back. There she encounters Dodgson, who is also hunting for the SUV. Harding pushes Dodgson into the mouth of a Tyrannosaur as revenge for his earlier attempt to murder her. He is then taken to the Tyrannosaurus' nesting site, whereupon his leg is broken and he is left for the babies to eat. After Harding fails to reach the helicopter in time, Kelly locates an abandoned building with a still-working boat inside. After making a quick getaway from a group of Velociraptors, the survivors are able to reach the boat and escape the island. While on the boat, Malcolm and Harding tells Levine, to his dismay, that some of the carnivores, including the Velociraptors and the Procompsognathus, are infected with prions, and any animal bitten by them will be infected also. This means that all the dinosaurs on the island are all fated to die due to spread of the prions. With that said, Thorne finally declares that it is time for all of them to go home. As with the first book, the main conflicts the characters must face is fending off attacks from Tyrannosaurus Rex, Velociraptor and Procompsognathus. Throughout the novel, Malcolm and Levine talk about various evolutionary and extinction theories, as well as the nature of modern science and the homogenizing and destructive nature of humanity. The book also discusses the role of prions in brain diseases, which has been at the root of concerns over Mad Cow Disease. Category:Books 2